Surplys meets with Chinese' acting chargé d'affaires as tensions rise

The representative of the opposition Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union said he was assured the conflict would end if the Taiwanese representative office in Vilnius was renamed.

"I met with the acting chargé d'affaires in Lithuania at their invitation, at their embassy, and I informed the chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee and the head of the State Security Department about that and I always do so if I think it's a matter of state importance," Surplys told BNS.

"You would find it hard to believe that but I also met with Taiwan's representatives when we were in the United States, I met with the head of their representative office. My goal is to mediate as I am sure nobody needs harsh conflicts," the lawmaker said.

Surplys said he was told by China's acting chargé d'affaires that the key reason for the conflict was the name of the Taiwanese representative office in Vilnius as "when the conversation on the official name starts, it's a red line for them and they do not allow anyone to cross it".

"The key question I asked was whether it was really about the name as our ruling block keeps on saying that it's not about the name, that China is angered by our 5G ban for Chinese companies and for our exit from the 17+1 format. The embassy's chargé d'affaires assured me that the name was the only problem and they would not object to the operation of Taipei's office in Lithuania, just as it does in other countries in the world, but the problem is in the name and the fact that hardly anyone is talking to them from our ministry," Surplys said.

"We talked about what ifs. Their position is that Lithuania can really come out of this situation as a winner, (…) if we changed those several letters and named the office the way the whole world does, and the whole conflict would end," the opposition representative said.

Earlier this week, China's General Administration of Customs officially notified Lithuania on the country's decision to suspend imports of beef, dairy products and beer.

Lithuania's exports to China plunged 91 percent in December, from the same period last year, based on the figures from the European Commission.

Lithuanian-Chinese relations soured after a Taiwanese representative office was opened in Vilnius under the island's name. Experts say the name in Chinese sounds like it is Taiwan's representative office, and Beijing views that as Taiwan's attempt to act as an independent country.